


One Woman's Mistake

by mldrgrl



Series: Adventures of The Lady Detective and The Writer [36]
Category: Californication (TV), The Fall (TV 2013)
Genre: Awkward Conversations, F/M, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-22
Updated: 2017-07-22
Packaged: 2018-12-05 06:37:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11572434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mldrgrl/pseuds/mldrgrl
Summary: Stella has another visitor as she prepares for the wedding





	One Woman's Mistake

Because Stella had spent many years living out of hotels, she prided herself on being an experienced and well-prepared traveler.  She could easily forecast for any situation.  Even though she only brought one bag with her, not including the garment bag for her dress, it held everything she needed for the weekend.  Being organized and compact kept her calm.

 

Her hair and makeup took very little time.  She knew Hank liked when her hair was down with thick curls so that’s what she did.  She only wore a little foundation to even the skin tone and hide a few age spots and freckles.  A thin swipe of eyeliner and a light dusting of shimmery pale pink shadow brought out the color of her eyes.  The lipstick was the hardest choice to make.  She brought several shades with her, but couldn't decide on what the look was she was trying to achieve.  She wanted to be more natural than dramatic, but she really couldn't disregard a deep shade of plum that she just really loved.  To make a decision, she would have to finally put on the dress.

 

Since she was well prepared, the slight wrinkles in the bodice of the dress didn't bother her.  She simply removed it from the bag, hung it on the back of the bathroom door, and plugged in her portable iron.  She smoothed the skirt down and inspected it carefully for any hidden flaws while the iron heated up.

 

The dress had been a particularly tough decision for her.  She wanted to look formal, but not necessarily like a bride.  Then again, win or lose, this was going to be the only wedding she had, so she might as well look bride-like.  She'd discretely looked at a few bridal magazines at a bookshop near home, looking for anything that might capture the look she was found for.  Nothing seemed to catch her eye, so she just started googling dresses until she found it.  She printed off the image and took it to the tailor she frequented and asked if the woman could have it done in less than a month.  Three weeks later when she tried on the finished product, she knew she'd made the right choice.

 

It was a simple dress, but elegant.  Her inclination was to have it in midnight blue, but knowing it was for her wedding, the tailor insisted it be white.  It was A-line with a high, slightly scooped neck that followed the line of her clavicles.  The sleeves started from the top of her shoulders, fitted for her arms, and ended a few inches below her elbow.  From the shoulder, the top of her back was exposed as the line of the dress came down into a vee with a simple pearl button hiding the zip at the closure.  The skirt was modestly flared, pockets hidden in the folds, and fell just below her knees.  She would have to admit, when she looked at it, it felt like a wedding dress, but she loved it anyway.  

 

Using great care and after laying a thin towel over the dress, she ironed out the small wrinkles and then hung it back up to give it another once-over.  She put the iron away and checked the time.  By her estimate, she had about twenty minutes left to get ready.  With time running down, she pulled out the smaller bag she’d stowed the new lingerie in to hide it from Hank.  For this, she left the white behind and went with the midnight blue she had wanted.

 

First, she unpacked the silk robe and hung that up in the bathroom behind the dress.  She slipped into the lace bikini panties and inspected the lines from all angles in the mirror.  Certainly, she was no stranger to sexy lingerie, but she’d gone to great lengths to find something that was equally demure and enticing with what she thought Hank might like to see her in on their wedding night.  The front did look simple enough, albeit cut low and made of peekaboo lace.  Two thin bands of satin extended from the middle at her pubic bone and stretched up at an angle towards her hips.  Those two bands connected at the back of her tailbone in a spiderweb of satin criss-crossing across her backside.  Her cheeks were barely covered by the lace at the back.

 

Due to the cut of the dress, she had a need for a strapless bra, but she’d been able to find a matching bustier that gave her the lift and support she needed, coupled with the look she wanted.  The same peekaboo lace clung to her midriff and the same spiderweb of satin closed the bra at the back.  Hank was a relatively simple man to please; he would still enjoy it if she had on a cotton bra and panties, but she wanted it to be memorable.

 

Not that she was one to really stand on tradition, but the last thing she slipped on was a garter.  She wasn’t wearing any hosiery, but of course that wasn’t the point of the garter.  Even though neither of them were terribly interested in a by-the-book wedding, there was no reason it couldn’t be a typical wedding night.  In short time, they would no longer be two people that had a one night stand, or even just a pair living in sin, they would be husband and wife, for better or worse, et cetera, et cetera.

 

She’d barely slipped into the dress when there was another knock on the door.  She held the back of her dress closed with one hand to answer, thinking it might be Becca again, hoping it wasn’t Hank.  This time it was Karen.

 

“Holy fuck,” Karen said, shutting the door quickly.  “You look amazing.  Let me zip you.”

 

“Thank you.”  Stella turned so Karen could zip the dress and then she felt a slight tug as the button was closed.

 

“Turn, turn,” Karen said.

 

Stella obliged and did three quarters of a turn before spinning the other way to face Karen.  Karen shook her head and squeezed both of Stella’s elbows lightly.

 

“You look like…”  Karen paused, still shaking her head.  “I don’t know, Grace Kelly.  Or Veronica fucking Lake.”

 

Stella smoothed her hands down the front of her dress, a tad uncomfortable with being praised so emphatically and directly.  She turned towards the stand-up mirror in the room and checked her reflection.

 

“I came to see if you needed anything,” Karen said, dropping down to sit on the side of the bed.  “But, it looks like you’re all set to go.”

 

“I do need to decide on a shade of lipstick,” Stella replied, moving away from the mirror to where she’d left her make-up bag.

 

“I'm useless with make-up.”

 

“I view it as a necessary evil at times,” Stella replied, making a snap judgment and carrying a shade of light rose back to the mirror with her.  She would save the plum for another occasion, maybe for later that night.

 

“By the way, Becca showed me the compass you gave her.  That was incredibly generous of you.”

 

“It wasn't…”  Stella paused in her application of the lipstick.  “I don't think I have to tell you this, but your daughter means everything to Hank.”

 

Karen chuckled.  “I think that's an understatement.  He loves nothing more.”

 

“She's become very special to me as well.”

 

“I'm glad.  Becca never really connected with any of Hank's prior...friends.”

 

Stella raised a brow and scratched her nail along a smudge of lipstick at the corner of her mouth.  “It's my understanding they were never around long enough to connect with,” she said.

 

“Yeah, well...she really didn't like seeing her dad so unhappy.”

 

“Understandable.”

 

“I know you and Hank are trying to keep shit low key and all, but you really are a beautiful bride.”

 

“Thank you.”  Stella capped the lipstick and turned.  Her heels were waiting for her next to her bag where Karen was sitting and when she looked at them, she got butterflies.  The moment she stepped into those shoes, there was nothing left to do but wait.

 

“Breathing helps,” Karen said, giving her a knowing smile.  “Would you like a drink?”

 

Stella shook her head and placed a hand against her abdomen as she took a deep breath.

 

“Just breathe,” Karen repeated, standing and placing her hands on Stella’s shoulders.  “It passes.  Just think about how fucking fantastic you look and that it’s only a few little words and then you’re done.”

 

“And then the rest of your life starts.”

 

“If you’re lucky.”

 

Stella took another deep breath.  “Did Hank tell you why I wasn’t on the plane with him this weekend?”

 

“A work thing.”

 

“That wasn’t the truth.”

 

Karen cocked her head and Stella pulled away to drop her lipstick back in her make-up bag.  She tugged the zipper closed and waited with her back turned a few moments before she faced Karen again.

 

“I was not quite sure I could go through with this,” Stella said.  

 

“It’s just cold feet.”

 

“Perhaps.”

 

“Knowing Hank as I do, if you need more time or you’ve just changed your mind, he’ll have no problem just going on as though nothing happened.”

 

“That’s exactly what he offered to do.”

 

“You’re here, though.”

 

“Yes.”  Stella nodded and looked away.  “I nearly did something I would have regretted in the process, however.”

 

The two women stared at each other.  Karen tipped her head slightly, but her eyes went wide and Stella knew she wouldn’t have to spell it out for her.  It was obvious what she meant by the simple fact that Karen had once been in her shoes, but she had crossed the line that Stella only toed.  

 

Karen took Stella by the elbows this time and bent closer to look at her.  “You...didn’t though, did you?” she asked.  “Do something you regret?”

 

“No.”

 

“Oh, thank God.”  Karen dropped her arms and then shook her head, rolling her eyes up to the ceiling for a few moments.  “The regret is...overwhelming.  It stays with you.  And...he doesn’t deserve that kind of pain.  Not again.”

 

“I know that.”

 

Karen slumped a little and took a few steps back to sit on the bed again.  She braced her arms on the edge of the mattress and dropped her head so she was looking at the floor.  “I know it was probably strange and uncomfortable for you the first time you came out here,” she said.  “But, I had to see for myself if he’d been telling the truth and that he really was the happiest he’d ever been.”

 

“It was strange,” Stella admitted.  “But, not uncomfortable.”

 

“And he was telling the truth.  He was so fucking happy.  Happier than I’d probably ever known him to be, or at least hadn’t seen in a very long time.  And calm.  Like you’d brought peace to the chaos that had become his norm.”

 

“He’s always blamed LA for the dark period of his life.”

 

“He’s too forgiving.”

 

“Are you still in love with him?”

 

Karen looked up at Stella with an owl-eyed expression and after a few moments of silence, she shook her head.  “I wouldn’t say that I am.  But, I’ve known him for over half my life.  He’s the father of my daughter.  I can’t  _ not _ love him, believe me, I’ve tried.”

 

“Why did you never marry him?”

 

“Because I never really thought we chose our life together, it seemed like it was decided for us.”

 

“Because of Becca?”

 

“It’s ridiculous how much we hurt her just trying so hard not to hurt her.”  Karen straightened her back and blinked a few times, then wiped the underside of each eye with the back of her knuckle.  “Yes, because of Becca.  Or maybe because sometimes it felt like we were too chickenshit to admit that we had always wanted different things.”

 

Stella felt a wave of empathy wash over her and she stepped forward and took one of Karen’s hands between her own.

 

“Shit,” Karen said.  “You didn’t need to hear all this right now.”

 

“On the contrary, I think I understand a few things that maybe I didn’t before.”

 

“I think of Hank as my best friend.  Nothing more than that, I promise you.”

 

“I believe you.”

 

Karen slipped her hand out from Stella’s and stood.  “I think it’s getting to be about time.  I’ll go check to see if Hank is ready.”

 

Stella nodded and took a glance at the shoes waiting for her.  Karen put her hands on Stella’s shoulders again and shook her head.

 

“He’s going to take one look at you and…”  Karen didn’t finish her thought, but gave Stella’s shoulders a squeeze and then let her go.

 

“Karen?”

 

Karen stopped her path to the door and turned her attention back to Stella.

 

“Why did you want for us to have the wedding here?”

 

Karen hesitated with her hand on the door, looking contemplative.  “What I’ve come to realize is, the happier I see Hank, the less guilty I feel.  God, that sounds incredibly selfish, doesn’t it?”

 

“Everyone is the sum of their experiences, good, bad, or indifferent.  I love the person he is very much and I believe I can thank you, in part, for that.”

 

“Hank is very lucky to have found you.”

 

“I believe I’m the lucky one.”

 

“Fish will be here to come get you when it’s time.”

 

“You can tell him I’m ready.”

 

Karen nodded and then she left.  Stella turned around and moved her shoes from the bed to the floor.  She slipped them on one at a time and then stood in front of the mirror again.  She no longer felt nervous, she just felt ready.

 

The End


End file.
